A pleasant and refreshing experience Past Review

By Sarah Nelson (Middlebury College) - abroad from 09/24/2018 to 12/14/2018 with

University of East Anglia: Norwich - Direct Enrollment & Exchange

What did you gain/learn from your experience abroad? Was it worthwhile?

I learned a great deal from this experience. I learned about the politics and culture of Britain, and how Britain differs and compares to America. I learned about other European and non-European countries from friends, which was very interesting and beneficial. I learned more about how America is viewed by people in other parts of the world, which helped me to gain a clearer, more multi-faceted view of myself and my country. I also gained skills in living independently, since I had to shop, cook my own meals, plan my own trips and travel, and work out a budget. My experience was extremely worthwhile.

Personal Information

How much international exposure did you have prior to this program?	0-2 weeks

Review Your Program

* Overall educational experience Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.	I found this program to be enjoyable and worthwhile. There was enough academic rigor to keep me busy, but I still had free time to explore the country and culture. My classes could be very interesting. The professors were very approachable, and I received a lot of assistance at office hours, and there were other options for researching/writing help that I was aware of, but didn't personally need. My main criticism would be that the workload for the semester is very unevenly distributed, so almost all of the graded work is due in the final week. This makes most of the semester a bit too light, but then the last week or so too intense.
* Host Country Program Administration On-site administration of your program	The administrators were friendly, and put effort into making international students feel welcome and supported.
* Housing: How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?	I lived in the University Village. It was nothing great and my room was pretty small, but it was okay enough considering that it's college housing. I really liked that I was in a flat with just five other students who were all British, cause it helped me form friendships with people from my host country.
* Food:	You need to buy and prepare all of your own meals. I actually enjoyed doing that, cause it made me feel more independent and part of area, but I did miss the convenience of dining halls. I received a stipend, which was plenty to cover the cost of my food.
* Social & Cultural Integration: How integrated did you feel with the local culture?
* Health Care: How well were health issues addressed during the program?	I had no health issues while I was abroad.
* Safety:
If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program?	Yes Norwich was a lovely city, I made some great friends, I enjoyed my classes overall, and I gained valuable experience and insight in living more independently and engaging with other cultures.

Finances

* Money: How easily were you able to live on a student's budget? (1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost)	Since I ate pretty cheap, the meal stipend I received was plenty to cover my cost of living, plus a little extra.
Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week?	$60

Language

* Did your program have a foreign language component?	No

Direct Enrollment/Exchange

* Did you study abroad through an exchange program or did you directly enroll in the foreign university?	Exchange

Other Program Information

* Where did you live? Select all that apply	Dorm
* Who did you live with? Select all that apply	Local Students
* Who did you take classes with? Select all that apply	Local Students Americans International Students
About how many local friends did you make that you will likely keep in touch with?

A Look Back

* What did you like most about the program?	Norwich is a nice city and I had free time to explore it The college had a lot of social programs to attend at the start of the semester that helped me make some great friends from all around the world My seminars could be very engaging and interesting
* What could be improved?	The work load could be more evenly distributed, because the work could be too light at parts of the semester, but was too heavy in the last couple of weeks It would be nice to have more graded work. My entire grade was determined by only one or two assignments per class, which puts a lot of pressure on those assignments. I would have liked more of the programs put on to be more explicitly focused on exploring British culture and the local area.
* What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program?	I wish I had known to take more advantage of travel and exploration in the early part of the semester, because as the semester goes on it becomes much harder to work around friends' different schedules to plan a trip.

Reasons For Studying Abroad

To help future students find programs attended by like-minded individuals, please choose the profile that most closely represents you.	The Nearly Native or Trail Blazer Craving the most authentic experience possible, perhaps you lived with a host family or really got in good with the locals. You may have felt confined by your program requirements and group excursions. Instead, you'd have preferred to plan your own trips, even skipping class to conduct your own 'field work.'